My kids recently got a dog, and they debated on what to name it. I suggested Boo, since I recall an old 70s song called “Me and You and a Dog Named Boo.” It was recorded by Lobo, who gained temporary fame for such hits as “I’d Love You to Want Me” and “Don’t Expect Me to Be Your Friend.”
One of my children’s friends has a father with the nickname Boo, so they quickly halted my hope of giving a small jolt to the legacy of the singer-songwriter Lobo. Instead, the kids decided to name the puppy after another singer, one they felt more in tune with. Now the dog must respond to the name “Ace,” to whom they sing “Ace, Ace Baby.
The dog may not have gotten the name I wanted to give him, but he did give me an idea for another article for Associated Content. Here come my top ten songs with dog in the title. In spite of the protests from my kids, I refused to include “Who Let the Dogs Out?” You’re welcome.
10.”Dog Eat Dog” by Ted Nugent: This title might not go over well with our new pup, Ace Ace Baby, but it’s one of Nugent’s best early songs. The electric guitar is vintage Nugent, and the theme is vintage Nugent politics.
9. “Hound Dog” by Elvis Presley: The song might crack the top five if it actually had the lyrics I used to sing with it: “You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog, crappin’ on the side.
8. “Doghouse Blues” by Bill Monroe: The bluegrass legend here yodels about several misfortunes. He doesn’t have a dime. His wife is cheating on him. His wife kicks him out in the cold. He finally asks the dog to make room for him in the doghouse, but we never find out if the pooch was more sympathetic than the wife.
7. “Hey Bulldog” by The Beatles: The band sound as if they’re having a lot of fun on this song, and we feel privileged to get to share in it. They can be heard laughing and howling and conversing at the end of the song. The music is great as well, especially the piano in the intro. The lyrics aren’t bad either, including lines like “Some kind of innocence is measured out in miles, what makes you think you’re something special when you smile?”
6. “I’m Gonna Buy Me a Dog” by The Monkees: This American version of a fab four is having as much fun on this song as their British counterparts did on the previous one. The guy’s girl left him. He says he’s going to buy a dog “because I need a friend now.” The guys have fun throughout the song, exchanging some lame jokes that are meant more to invite than to amuse.
5. “To the Dogs or Whoever” by Josh Ritter: This song appeared on one of the best albums from 2007, The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter. The song opens with finding Florence and Calamity and Joan of Arc “Deep in the belly of a whale.” Many distorted images follow, such as “between the apples and the chloroform” and “a little bird floating on a hurricane.” The music and message in the song is much more upbeat than Ritter’s earlier work, providing a great opening to this underrated album.
4. “Sick as a Dog” by Aerosmith. I have always considered Rocks the best Aerosmith album, and this song is just one of the reasons. Steven Tyler’s voice has just the right touch of rebellion, and the guitar work here is sensational. The lyrics are also superior to most of the band’s other tunes. I love the word play in the chorus, “Sick as a dog, Cat got your tongue.”
3. “Salty Dog” by Flatt and Scruggs: I have heard the song played by many different people, including the sheriff of Mayberry himself on “The Andy Griffith Show.” The version I like best is by the greatest bluegrass duo of all time, Lester and Earl. The guy (or sometimes girl) singing the song is begging for a chance to be used. There may be little pride in that voice, but there is a lot of joy.
2. “The Underdog” by Spoon: One of the best cuts on the band’s Ga Ga Ga Ga album sounds like a political assault on the Bush administration. The song predicts the downfall of the President and his cronies, and it seemed prescient. Shortly after the album’s release, W’s approval rating sank to all-time lows. Instead of his own personal god, perhaps Bush should have listened to the chorus of the song: “You have no fear of the underdog, that’s why you will not survive.”
1. You Can Eat Dog Food” by Tom Paxton: This fun song has a serious message. Starving people were, and still are, being ignored by American society. Paxton brilliantly uses satire to expose the injustices in the United States. The song is a perfect companion for “Bring Back the Chair,” Paxton’s protest against capital punishment.
